Hello! We are in week 2 of the Pepernoot Coat Sew Along. Folks all over are busy sewing this beauty up and I can’t wait to show you the results. This coat is such a fun coat to work on and it’s so versatile. It will get you through the remaining winter and transition easily into fall. However you make it I would love to see the results. For now, let’s the Rhonda take it away.

There was a time when coats were always in a basic color, and chosen carefully as this would most likely be the only coat in your wardrobe. Coats are still carefully chosen as they are an important part of our wardrobes, they keep us warm and help to keep us dry be it rain or snow. But a coat can also be a wonderful accessory to your wardrobe, not only functional, but fun! With that said, the reveal of the fabric that I have chosen for my sew along Pepernoot coat. The fabric with the black background and the large cobalt blue flowers will be the outer fabric of the coat and the more abstract print will be the lining. Not an everyday coat by any means!

The black fabric with the cobalt blue flowers is a heavy twill. The flowers are a chenille with a velvet center. I’ll never be lost in a crowd when wearing this coat!

Many of you whom I’ve heard from, have never made a coat, so the Pepernoot coat will be your first. Congratulations on taking the plunge. I think you are going to love your new coats. And I also think you’ll find that making a coat is really no more challenging than a blouse or a dress.

Since a number of you have never made a coat, I thought we would discuss the pattern in depth. Once you print off the pattern, be it at home or at the copy shop, you’ll find an insert that explains the symbols on the pattern. Be sure to cut this away from the pattern and save it along with your instructions. It will come in handy.

As I explained in our last post, the Pepernoot pattern has a separate pattern for the main body of the coat as well as the lining. Be sure to pay close attention and print off both files.

The back bodice lining has a seam at center back. The back bodice lining also includes a pleat. We’ll discuss the pleat once we put the lining together.

The lining for the front and back bodice does not have darts. Rather than the darts being sewn in, the fullness for the dart has become a tuck. You’re going to love not having to sew in the darts!

The back skirt lining for the coat is cut on the fold. Notice the symbols in the top and lower corner. A tuck has been allowed for the skirt of the coat. This has been included for ease of movement when wearing the coat.

The front bodice for the main body of the coat does include a dart.

The shaping of the shoulder seems a little strange at first glance.

But once the shoulder yoke is placed against the top of the pattern, the armhole now becomes quite obvious.

The back bodice also include a dart. Please note that the back bodice is not cut on the fold, but the back yoke is cut on the fold.

The back skirt of the coat is also cut on the fold.

In the event that you would like to lengthen the skirt, a line has been provided as a guideline. If you lengthen the back, be sure to lengthen the front skirt as well as the front facing and the front band.

The front skirt includes the placement of the pocket. My recommendation would be to wait and decide on the placement once the pockets have been made. I did not use this placement guide on my original coat.

The pockets have been designed to include a zipper opening. You will find a pocket pattern as well as a pocket facing pattern.

If you will be inserting the zippers, an easy way to mark and line up the pocket with the pocket facing is to punch small holes into all 4 corners of both the pocket and the pocket facing as I am pointing to in the picture below. Mark lightly with a marking pen.

If you are feeling a little intimidated about adding a zipper, an option will be to make the pocket into a patch pocket with a side opening. I will show you how to do this in our next post. In the picture below, I am pointing to the approximate opening of a patch pocket.

There is a pattern for the front facing as well as the front band.

The front band is what covers the zipper. The front band is cut on the fold and you will only cut 1.

The front band will only be sewn on the right side of the coat, but of course the facing will be sewn on the right and left sides of the coat, on the inside attached to the lining.

The hood of the Pepernoot coat is a 3-piece hood. There are 2 side pieces and a center panel.

The hood is self lined, so you will cut 4 of the side panels.

The center panel is cut on the fold, and you will cut 2 center panels.

Before we begin to sew our coats together, think about what you might like to do to customize your coat. The yokes and the sleeve tabs give you a wonderful opportunity to do a little piping. Piped seams are quite easy to do, and you’ll love how they make the yokes pop. I will be piping my yokes and the sleeve tabs in velvet to coordinate with the velvet centers of the flowers in my fabric.

When you take a look at the instructions, you will see that the pockets are first on the agenda. We will be sewing the coat together and then adding the pockets after the shell of the coat is made and before we sew in the lining. Once the shell of the coat is made, it will be easy to determine where to best place the pockets.

If you have not purchased your pattern, you can find it HERE. Remember that with this sew along, you can also follow along on the progress of Sadie Fox and her fearless group of sewists who are making the Pepernoot coat in her Denver, Colorado studio.

Be sure to pay Yuki a visit. She’s the designer behind the Pepernoot coat. You can find her website HERE.